Becoming a teacher should be one of he most exciting times of your adult life, but it can easily become one of the most stressful times if you don’t know anything about the community, district, or school. Working in South Kingstown High School will present you with a wide variety of challenges and rewards. The South Kingstown school district claims to excel academically, athletically, and in the arts. The fallowing report will show where the High School excels and where it needs improvement including test scores, teaching conditions, and learning conditions. Knowing this will allow a person to make an educated decision about the South Kingstown High School whether they want to live in the district or teach there.
Community Summary:
South Kingstown is located on the shore of Rhode Island about a 30-minute drive from Providence. South Kingstown is the largest city in Rhode Island, land wise, but it does not have the largest population (United States Census Bureau). The majority of the people in the town live in houses they own and the average value of the houses are 171,200 dollars which is a little more than 50,000 over the national average (United States Census Bureau). Most of the houses are regular residential areas, but a small minority lives in government project housing (United States Census Bureau). SK is largely a white town with 91.1% of the town being white. The minorities include African American (1.6%), Native American (1.6%), Asian (3.1%), the other minorities are less and one percent of the population. South Kingstown is an economically diverse town, while the town has a larger average income, about $15,000 more than the national average, and the poverty level is better than the national average, 3.1% compared to 9.2% (United States Census Bureau), the problem is the large gap between the income levels. The crime rates are significantly lower than the national averages in all categories, by at least 50%. Schools are a large part of the community and that is evident in the degrees held by the population, 91.3% of the adult population have high school degrees, 10% higher than national average, and 46.5% hold a bachelors degree or higher, almost double the national average (United States Census Bureau).
District Summary:
The South Kingstown school district has four elementary schools, two middle schools and one common high school. The funding is largely based on the property taxes collected by the town, which has caused problems around the country but helps town like SK which have a higher than average income, and higher property values, but the district spends about the same per pupil as most other districts in the state (Rhode Island School Board). Being a public school all students must meet or exceed the NCLB standards and also create a portfolio with examples of work from every class taken while enrolled at SKHS in order to graduate. Almost all teachers have to have either a masters degree or undergraduate in teaching and either a masters or undergraduate in a specific subject, with the exception of the technical education teachers, such as auto-mechanics and carpentry. The South Kingstown school district has school sport teams starting in middle school. The high school teams are all division I, and most are regular contenders in the state playoffs. Students who live in SK and choose to attend a vocational school receive transportation and tuition to a vocational school in Warwick, but they are then considered part of the Warwick school system.
School Summary:
South Kingstown High School was deemed to be making insufficient progress when being compared to the NCLB standards. Out of 13 subgroups, 3 failed to meet the standards in all subjects, those subgroups are minorities and the free-lunch subgroups. The school as a whole did better than the state average but those 3 groups failed to meet standards. The teacher to student ratio is better than most RI public schools by one student (1:11 compared to 1:12). The students at SKHS feel safer while in school than other students at other RI public schools (7% feel unsafe, compared to 9%). The drop out and graduation rates have remained very constant at SKHS with about 80% of the senior class graduating and 20% dropping out, this 10% above the national average but is worse than neighboring districts like North Kingstown (Rhode Island School Board). The parent involvement at SKHS has historically been low, but dues to new technologies such as e-mail and a mass calling phone system, parents are becoming more and more involved in the school and they are being kept up to date (South Kingstown School District). South Kingstown has participated in the SALT survey for a number of years and has shown improvement in many areas during those years. The Classroom climate has improved for both the teachers and the students, the teachers have been reporting improvement for the past three years and the students have also (Rhode Island School Board). The teacher work climate has fluctuated over the past years, which could be linked to the changing of principals and administrations after the 2005-2006 academic year (Rhode Island School Board). So overall the teaching staff at South Kingstown high school has become more comfortable over the past decade, along with the students.
Conclusion:
The town of South Kingstown is a community located on the southern coast of Rhode Island, with a population of just under 28,000. Of those 28,000 just over 11,200 are enrolled in the school system. All of the elementary schools feed into two middle schools which feed into the districts only high school. The South Kingstown High School has gone through many different stages, and right now things seem to be holding steady. The test scores are going up overall, but certain subgroups need help to improve their scores. The school also needs to find ways to improve the way they promote graduation and the way the students are tracked over their four years in high school, which they have started with the portfolio system. The No Child Left Behind Act could help the school improve their scores if the funding was directed towards specific areas. The also school needs to find a system or policy that improves the way students and teachers interact with each other, in order to make sure the students know how they are doing in their classes before they are in danger of failing. The South Kingstown School Department has created an above average high school that needs some small adjustments to make it a perfect place to learn and work.
South Kingstown High School Context Report
Introduction:
Becoming a teacher should be one of he most exciting times of your adult life, but it can easily become one of the most stressful times if you don’t know anything about the community, district, or school. Working in South Kingstown High School will present you with a wide variety of challenges and rewards. The South Kingstown school district claims to excel academically, athletically, and in the arts. The fallowing report will show where the High School excels and where it needs improvement including test scores, teaching conditions, and learning conditions. Knowing this will allow a person to make an educated decision about the South Kingstown High School whether they want to live in the district or teach there.
Community Summary:
South Kingstown is located on the shore of Rhode Island about a 30-minute drive from Providence. South Kingstown is the largest city in Rhode Island, land wise, but it does not have the largest population (United States Census Bureau). The majority of the people in the town live in houses they own and the average value of the houses are 171,200 dollars which is a little more than 50,000 over the national average (United States Census Bureau). Most of the houses are regular residential areas, but a small minority lives in government project housing (United States Census Bureau). SK is largely a white town with 91.1% of the town being white. The minorities include African American (1.6%), Native American (1.6%), Asian (3.1%), the other minorities are less and one percent of the population. South Kingstown is an economically diverse town, while the town has a larger average income, about $15,000 more than the national average, and the poverty level is better than the national average, 3.1% compared to 9.2% (United States Census Bureau), the problem is the large gap between the income levels. The crime rates are significantly lower than the national averages in all categories, by at least 50%. Schools are a large part of the community and that is evident in the degrees held by the population, 91.3% of the adult population have high school degrees, 10% higher than national average, and 46.5% hold a bachelors degree or higher, almost double the national average (United States Census Bureau).
District Summary:
The South Kingstown school district has four elementary schools, two middle schools and one common high school. The funding is largely based on the property taxes collected by the town, which has caused problems around the country but helps town like SK which have a higher than average income, and higher property values, but the district spends about the same per pupil as most other districts in the state (Rhode Island School Board). Being a public school all students must meet or exceed the NCLB standards and also create a portfolio with examples of work from every class taken while enrolled at SKHS in order to graduate. Almost all teachers have to have either a masters degree or undergraduate in teaching and either a masters or undergraduate in a specific subject, with the exception of the technical education teachers, such as auto-mechanics and carpentry. The South Kingstown school district has school sport teams starting in middle school. The high school teams are all division I, and most are regular contenders in the state playoffs. Students who live in SK and choose to attend a vocational school receive transportation and tuition to a vocational school in Warwick, but they are then considered part of the Warwick school system.
School Summary:
South Kingstown High School was deemed to be making insufficient progress when being compared to the NCLB standards. Out of 13 subgroups, 3 failed to meet the standards in all subjects, those subgroups are minorities and the free-lunch subgroups. The school as a whole did better than the state average but those 3 groups failed to meet standards. The teacher to student ratio is better than most RI public schools by one student (1:11 compared to 1:12). The students at SKHS feel safer while in school than other students at other RI public schools (7% feel unsafe, compared to 9%). The drop out and graduation rates have remained very constant at SKHS with about 80% of the senior class graduating and 20% dropping out, this 10% above the national average but is worse than neighboring districts like North Kingstown (Rhode Island School Board). The parent involvement at SKHS has historically been low, but dues to new technologies such as e-mail and a mass calling phone system, parents are becoming more and more involved in the school and they are being kept up to date (South Kingstown School District). South Kingstown has participated in the SALT survey for a number of years and has shown improvement in many areas during those years. The Classroom climate has improved for both the teachers and the students, the teachers have been reporting improvement for the past three years and the students have also (Rhode Island School Board). The teacher work climate has fluctuated over the past years, which could be linked to the changing of principals and administrations after the 2005-2006 academic year (Rhode Island School Board). So overall the teaching staff at South Kingstown high school has become more comfortable over the past decade, along with the students.
Conclusion:
The town of South Kingstown is a community located on the southern coast of Rhode Island, with a population of just under 28,000. Of those 28,000 just over 11,200 are enrolled in the school system. All of the elementary schools feed into two middle schools which feed into the districts only high school. The South Kingstown High School has gone through many different stages, and right now things seem to be holding steady. The test scores are going up overall, but certain subgroups need help to improve their scores. The school also needs to find ways to improve the way they promote graduation and the way the students are tracked over their four years in high school, which they have started with the portfolio system. The No Child Left Behind Act could help the school improve their scores if the funding was directed towards specific areas. The also school needs to find a system or policy that improves the way students and teachers interact with each other, in order to make sure the students know how they are doing in their classes before they are in danger of failing. The South Kingstown School Department has created an above average high school that needs some small adjustments to make it a perfect place to learn and work.
References
Rhode Island School Board, (2007). South kingstown schools. Retrieved
October 5, 2007, from Information That Works Web site:
http://www.infoworks.ride.uri.edu/2007/queries/FindSch.asp
United States, Census Bureau (2000). Fact sheet. Retrieved October
5, 2007, from Fact Sheet Web site:
http://factfinder.census.gov/
South Kingstown School Department, (2007). South kingstown Schools.
Retrieved October 5, 2007, from SKHS Web site:
http://fc.skschools.net/SKHS/
CR EVAL - DENIS M